Asklemmy

Not that I recall. The trick to answering the question, I think, is to say a few nice things about about the organization, or the position, or yourself.

"I'm interested in working for a dynamic institution like Yoyodyne Industries...." or "As you can see from my resume I have a wealth of experience in spline reticulation...."

I found it was useful to write out my own cheat sheets of answers for common/likely interview questions, including some "personal experience"/"tell me about a time you..." type questions just to drill with.

It's honestly trickier with overtly shittier jobs/orgs, like sales, food service, or cleaning. Kinda hard to say why you love Target or Walmart or McDonald's. You can touch on how you like the product, but best to circle back to talking about your work ethic.

Yes, but the wording sounds more like "I'm eager to put my time to productive use".

Yes

I almost always say this. I usually turn down the job and state that the pay being offered is a little too low ... they sometimes raise it.

Let's reverse roles for a second. You're the employer. What reasons would there be, for you to advertise an opening? Could your primary motivation possibly be paying people money? (Rhetorical question) Considering you already have a team, what kind of person do you want to fill the position? What profile should they have? And how would their motivation reflect on their expected performance?

P.S. I'm not saying, not to talk about money, but there's a time for talking about that vs. finding out, whether you're a fit. And answering a question about your main motivation on why you want to be part of their team with money, doesn't reflect well on you or any expectations of you.

An interview is an opportunity for both of you to decide if it's a good fit. Unfortunately the seeker is usually happy to accept anything. Lying is counter productive. They only want to hear any reason that you picked their workplace. Consider it structured small talk and focus on your energy.

I generally say: "let's be realistic, I'm not passionate about what your company does. I am here to trade my time for wages and I have heard good ones about [company name].

Elaborate by mentioning something from their website to appear engaged and interested. Say you were a perfect fit because you meet all the requirements, talk about a friend who works there, mention using their products or services, or just mention that it's close to your house and will be a short commute. Ultimately this is a soft question that is just to get a quick idea of each person applying.